snow baptism

while saudi arabia is the home of Mecca, it is not the one replete with pilgrims sporting north face and other overpriced, but super trendy, outdoor paraphernalia. and so the GPS was pointed north; to sunday river ski resort- what better way to celebrate VD than bruises and plenty of the white, flakey stuff.

i quickly learned that i display an aptitude for clipping into and out of skis- must be the transfer of skills from the bike cleats and pedals- unfortunately, that was the only positive transfer; falling over and crappy co-ordination are obviously areas in which i excel in all sports.

a group of 20 and 30 somethings can look fairly nimble and athletic in the ski boot fitting room, but on a segregated patch of nursery slope- neonatal flat may be a more accurate descriptor- looked more like the local nursing home's day out for the arthritic alcoholic.

prior to hitting the powder, the prospect of riding the chair lift was exciting (disembarking it, not so much), fortunately, our patient instructor determined that we would be better off riding the "magic carpet" to the apex of our molehill. an airport conveyor belt buried into the snow transported our posse of neophytes up the gradient, while we obediantly assumed the "squat and crap in the middle of the woods" position.

learning to ski also means being quite comfortable with touching/grabbing/anchoring on random stranger's body parts, and having other beginner's grope at your own for leverage, or to brake with. by the end of 3 hours of intensive "no. stop! turn both skis towards the hill", my self-esteem was elevated- until a 3 year old in their "i'm so tiny and cute" l.l. bean puffy outfit, ripped by, without poles.

the apres ski is where i am focusing my energies, unfortunately, this also leads to repeated tripping and falling.